


Deer Trails and Dusty Roads

by Schnaucl (Onetrackmind)



Category: Numb3rs
Genre: M/M, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-09-26
Updated: 2009-09-26
Packaged: 2017-11-21 04:16:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/593352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Onetrackmind/pseuds/Schnaucl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Charlie's at a math conference when the military stages a coup. Ian has to get him back safely.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Deer Trails and Dusty Roads

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks as always to my beta, knotted_rose. I used U-- and H-- for the countries because I figure it's somewhere in Eastern Europe but I don't know the political situation or geography well enough to do it justice, hence the made up countries.

“Professor.”  
  
Charlie groaned and did his best to ignore the voice trying to rouse him from sleep. He’d stayed up most of the night drinking and discussing cutting edge math with Li and Mathewson, finally stumbling into his own bed around 4:30. His presentation wasn’t until after 1 and it couldn’t possibly be that late already.  
  
“Professor, get up,” the same voice said urgently.  
  
Charlie continued to ignore him. His alarm wasn’t going off so he didn’t really have to get up yet.  
  
“I hope you’re decent.” He barely had time to process the words before the covers were unceremoniously yanked down.   
  
Charlie sat up with an indignant squawk, suddenly very glad he’d left his boxers on before collapsing into bed. “What the hell, man?” His eyes widened as he realized who had been trying to rouse him. “Ian? What the hell are you doing in U--? And why are you in my room?” He was beginning to wonder if this was one of those lucid dream things. He’d imagined Ian dozens of times pulling down his sheets but not like this. Usually there was kissing and groping involved and they were both a lot less dressed.   
  
He couldn’t think of a single reason for Ian Edgerton to actually be at his math conference in U—and he was even less clear on why he’d be in Charlie’s room trying to wake him at the ungodly hour of – he glanced at the clock 5:07.  
  
“While you were sleeping the military executed a coup. It’s about to get very bloody, especially for people like you. Get dressed.”  
  
Charlie blinked, his sleep fogged mind still trying to catch up.   
  
“Now, Professor.”   
  
Charlie got out of bed and pulled on jeans and a T-shirt. Ian turned away to give him a little privacy and for the first time Charlie noticed the gun in his hand. He shouldn’t have been surprised but it made the whole situation feel even more surreal.   
  
“So what’s the plan here?” Charlie asked, starting to lace up his shoes.  
  
“The plan is to get across the border before it closes, but it may already be too late for that.” Ian looked around the room. Charlie was glad he didn’t have things scattered everywhere. Ian had been to his office, so he knew Charlie wasn’t exactly tidy, but still.  
  
“Do you have a backpack or something? You should take a couple of changes of clothes. Any food you have. Wear boots if you have them. Is there anything else you need? We have to travel as light as possible.”  
  
Charlie thought for a minute but aside from his toiletries kit he couldn’t think of anything. He usually brought a small eMachine with him for trips like this. It had his paper on it, and some notes he’d taken at other panels, but he’d already e-mailed those to himself as a backup. There was nothing classified on the machine. “No, there’s nothing else. And yes, I have a backpack. I use it for a carryon. Boots, too. I was going to go hiking.”   
  
“Good. Give me your passport. You don’t want to be identified as an American.”  
  
Charlie handed it over wordlessly and Ian tucked it away. “Do you know how to use this?” Ian asked, handing him the gun.   
  
The metal felt cold in his hand. Charlie swallowed. “Yeah. I’ve fired one a few times but I’m not—I haven’t—“ he stammered. It suddenly seemed a lot less surreal and a lot more real.  
  
“Safety on, safety off,” Ian said, demonstrating, and then putting the safety back on. “Only fire as a last resort.” Charlie held the gun uncertainly, his hands shaking just a little. Ian looked at him critically. “Keep it in your boot. I have more ammunition if you need it.”  
  
Charlie nodded. “What about everyone else?”  
  
“Sorry, Professor,” Ian said, sounding as though he genuinely meant it, “but it’s safer to travel in as small a group as possible.”  
  
Charlie wanted to protest, after all, he knew a lot of the attendees, counted them as friends. But Ian was right. It would be hard enough to get the two of them across the border safely; he could hardly expect even Ian to get another 30 people across. “Let me at least wake a few people up, give them a chance.”  
  
“Professor—“  
  
“I know time is of the essence but these are my friends. Please, Ian.”  
  
“Five minutes.”  
  
Charlie woke as many people as he could, giving them phone numbers for the ones he couldn’t reach. Ian never strayed more than a few feet from his side. Then his time was up and Ian hustled him out the door and toward a sedan. Charlie slid his backpack off to put it in the trunk but Ian shook his head. “Keep it with you. We may have to ditch the car in a hurry.”  
  
They drove in silence for a few minutes. The streets were oddly busy for this time of morning. There were more cars than he could remember seeing on the road before, and they were all going in the same direction, toward the border.  
  
A few miles later Ian pulled off the main road onto a back road. “The distance might be longer as the crow flies, but with traffic the time might be shorter. I guess the shortest distance between two points isn’t always a straight line, huh Professor?”  
  
“I guess not.” He managed a small smile, knowing Ian was trying to relax him. “How did you know where I was? Did Don tell you?”  
  
“Something like that.”  
  
“And you just happened to be in the area?”  
  
“I had a job in H—“  
  
“Did you finish?”  
  
“Not yet.”  
  
“Oh.” He wasn’t quite sure what to think about that. Ian had left in the middle of a job to rescue him from possible danger. That was – that was way too much to think about.  
  
Despite his best efforts to stay awake, Charlie eventually fell asleep again as his lack of rest the night before caught up with him. They might be in a dangerous situation, but if anyone could get them out of it, it was Ian Edgerton.  
  
“Wake up, Professor. We’re approaching the border.”  
  
This time Charlie didn’t try and fight to stay asleep. He sat up straight in his seat, fingers curling over the straps of his backpack. He bit his lip but didn’t try to talk, leaving Ian free to concentrate on the road ahead of them. He looked out the window and saw heavy traffic ahead and behind them.  
  
“Damn,” Ian muttered. He’d been right, the border was already closed. There were soldiers searching cars, pulling out drivers and passengers. Charlie flinched as he heard a gunshot. “Get down!” He waited for Charlie to slouch down in his seat and then made an abrupt U-turn. There were more gunshots but none hit the car. From his slouched position Charlie couldn’t see out the windshield but he felt it when the car left the road and he wondered for one horrible moment if Ian had been shot. Luckily Ian looked fine. Taking the vehicle off road was clearly a deliberate move.  
  
After an eternity, and what felt like bumping across at least three fields and more than a dozen pot holes Ian said, “you can sit up now. We’re going to have to ditch the car and find another way to cross.”  
  
“Do you know of another way to cross?” Charlie asked anxiously.  
  
“I have a few ideas. Don’t worry, Professor. We’ll get out of here. I won’t let anything happen to you.”  
  
“Thanks,” Charlie said quietly. It did make him feel better, even though he knew it wasn’t a promise Ian could really make.   
  
After they abandoned the vehicle they started days of hiking through the backwoods. They started on a dirt road but as often as not Ian used deer trails and sometimes no trail at all but Charlie trusted that he knew what he was doing. The trees were mostly thick but when they weren’t Ian would leave him somewhere for a few minutes, never more than 10 minutes at a time, and scout ahead. Even though Charlie could see his watch and knew it was only minutes it always felt like hours. He would hold the gun tightly in his hand and remind himself again and again not to fire until he was sure. The last thing he wanted to do was injure Ian.  
  
It was fortunate that Ian had so much outdoor experience. He usually managed to find water which they used with purification tablets Ian had brought with them. When they ran out of food Ian knew which plants were edible and which weren’t. He probably could have hunted for them, too, but they didn’t want to risk a fire and Charlie wasn’t about to eat meat raw.  
  
Charlie was grateful he enjoyed hiking for its own sake or he might have slowed Ian down even further. The nights were cold so they often lay down next to each other for warmth, although one of them was always keep watch. Charlie was never sure just how much Ian slept while it was Charlie’s turn to be on watch. They both knew he had a lot of talents, but that kind of watchfulness was not one of them. They occasionally heard gunshots, but they never sounded particularly close. If Ian noticed that Charlie occasionally woke with a hard on, he didn’t show it. The first time Charlie was mortified, particularly since he had a feeling that it was his proximity to Ian that caused it. But it wasn’t like he had somewhere he could discretely take care of it. They had a shared bedroll but no tent and he wasn’t going to do anything within Ian’s earshot and unless he was scouting ahead Ian was always within earshot. By the third time it happened he figured if Ian could ignore it then he could, too.  
  
When Ian judged it was safe enough they talked a little. Charlie talked about Don and his team and cases they’d worked. When Charlie felt particularly rattled or dispirited Ian asked him questions about his math or regaled him with stories from his own work.  
  
Despite being cold, tired, and miserable, and often scared, Charlie still found himself thinking about Ian in dangerous ways. He’d catch himself looking at his strong arms, or the curve of his ass, imagining what it would be like to sleep next to him not out of necessity, but choice. Or he’d think about what it would be like to have Ian inside him. Maybe some passionate thank god we’re alive sex. He tried to stop those thoughts as soon as he could. He’d felt vaguely guilty fantasizing about Ian before, but now that Ian was actually around it was just stupid. He was sure Ian had his share of admirers, male and female, and he’d let Charlie down as gently as possible. But it would make an already difficult situation even more awkward.   
  
By the fourth day, he really, really wanted a shower. They’d come across bodies of water large enough to wash in, but they were glacial runoff so actually getting that wet without a way to dry off was too dangerous. He was grimy and dirty and he smelled and he’d just as soon not be around Ian in that condition. Of course, it wasn’t like Ian wasn’t in the same condition. But still.   
  
They occasionally skirted around small towns or the odd house. Ian always seemed to somehow become even more alert and Charlie was very careful to move as quietly as he could, and only step where Ian stepped.   
  
It made him long for a phone. He’d taken his cell phone with him but he couldn’t get a good signal. He wondered if the military had jammed the signal. He should have been back from the conference two days ago and he was sure people were worried. Though if Don had sent Ian after him at least there would be some reassurance.   
  
On the fifth day their route took them by an isolated farmhouse. It wasn’t civilization but it was still more human contact than they’d had in days. Ian moved them slowly, cautiously around it but Charlie found himself quickly yanked to the forest floor when Ian caught sight of movement.   
  
A group of soldiers milled behind the farmhouse. They brought out a group of prisoners and Charlie started when he recognized Professor Mathewson. “Ian,” he whispered urgently, “I—“ but then Ian’s hand was over his mouth and taking his point, Charlie subsided.   
  
Ian left his hand there, which was probably a good thing because when the soldiers lined the prisoners up, Charlie instinctively tried to rise to help them but was kept firmly in place by Ian’s arm. He watched in horror as the soldiers opened fire. He jerked against Ian’s arm and made a wounded sound that was muffled by Ian’s hand. His eyes burned with tears of guilt and shame but he tried his best to keep from crying, less out of embarrassment than fear of discovery. He should have done something. He should have made Ian take everyone with them.   
  
When Ian judged it safe he led them the rest of the way around the farmhouse. Charlie followed automatically, mind still reeling with the horror of what he’d seen. He replayed the scene over and over, trying to find something he or Ian could have done, something that would have saved everyone.  
  
After they were a good number of miles away Ian pulled Charlie into an entirely unexpected hug. The kindness undid him and shook with the force of the sobs that he still tried to quiet. Ian didn’t say anything, just held him and stroked his back. Charlie had no doubt that even now he was keeping an eye on the forest around them. When at last he quieted Ian released him, but caught his wrist, waiting until Charlie looked at him to speak. “This wasn’t your fault.”  
  
Charlie gave a bitter laugh. It felt like his fault. He was a genius, wasn’t he? Shouldn’t he have been able to think of something that would save them? Shouldn’t he have made Ian take them all instead of selfishly agreeing to keep their numbers small? If he had, Mathewson would be alive. “No? I should have—“  
  
“This wasn’t your fault,” Ian said again. “Trying to save everyone would have gotten us both killed and there just—wasn’t enough time to take out all the soldiers, not without risking our position. I’m sorry, Charlie, I am. But I couldn’t risk it, or you.”  
  
For the first time Charlie caught signs of grief in Ian’s expression. His voice was still taut with misery, but he said, “I know.”  
  
For the next week, instead of erotic dreams about Ian, Charlie dreamed of seeing men slaughtered, and once, a horrible dream that conflated the two, Ian sucking him off while men were executed around them. Ian always seemed to know somehow when a nightmare started because he inevitable woke Charlie up, murmuring soothing words and telling him that nightmares were natural after witnessing something like that.   
  
Eight days after the slaughter at the farmhouse they came to an old forest road which cut across the border. They had a few more tense moments dodging patrols but managed to cross safely. Charlie was almost weak-kneed with relief which quickly turned into giddiness. “We made it!”  
  
“Yes, we did, Prof—“ Ian was cut off as Charlie launched himself toward Ian and pulled his head down for a fierce, jubilant kiss. He’d just started to panic about what he’d done when Ian’s arms slid around him, holding him tight as he returned the kiss with interest.   
  
Then Ian stepped away abruptly and Charlie blinked in confusion. “If this is because I got you out of U-- You don’t owe me anything, Charlie. You certainly don’t owe me this.”  
  
Charlie blinked. “Ian—I’ve wanted you since practically the first case we worked together. Okay—maybe since the second case.”  
  
Ian just looked at him, clearly surprised.   
  
“For such an observant guy, sometimes you miss the important stuff.”  
  
“I—apparently I do,” Ian said wryly. “We still need to get you home. And I still need to finish my job here. But maybe after…”  
  
“I’d like that. I’d like that a lot.”  
  
For the first time in a while Charlie found himself looking forward to the road ahead.


End file.
